Sheik Week Day 1: The Best of The Iron Sheik’s Twitter

Thanks to long time reader and recent pal Brian Richards…welcome to Sheik Week at mikeladano.com, bubba!  For the next five days we will be looking at some of the Sheik’s most hilarious tweets.  From song lyrics to current events to pop culture, the Sheik has capslock commentary on them all.  And he really, really, really still has a grudge for Hulk Hogan.  This series will run Tuesday to Saturday this week.  Let’s hear it for the Iron Sheik!

TUESDAY SHEIK FACT:

The Iron Sheik won the WWF World Heavyweight Championship from Bob Backlund on December 26, 1983 due to Backlund’s manager throwing in the towel during a vicious camel clutch.  Sheik lost the title January 23, 1984 to Hulk Hogan and his atomic legdrop.  Hulkamania had begun.

RE-REVIEW: Def Leppard – Mirror Ball: Live & More (2011 Japan bonus track)

Part Forty of the Def Leppard Review Series

Original review:  Mirror Ball (2011)

DEF LEPPARD – Mirror Ball: Live & More (2011 Marquee Japanese import with bonus track)

It took Def Leppard until 2011 to release finally their first standalone live album that you could go out and buy on a CD.  Chronologically speaking, we have already reviewed seven Leppard live “albums” from earlier sources.  Mirror Ball is still technically considered their “first” live album.   And they really leaned into doing live albums since then, as you’ll see going forward.  Most of the content of this series will be live in nature post-Mirror Ball.

One cool thing about Mirror Ball is that there is no long lead-in.  It starts immediately with the opening to “Rock! Rock!” with no fade-in.  Cut to the chase, get on with the rock.  It’s Screamin’ Joe Elliott in fine form right from the start.  Brilliant, hard version going top speed.  Leppard shift gears into “Rocket” from there, certainly a sudden change in direction.  This is a short 4 1/2 minute version compared to the longer jam on the “C’Mon C’Mon” single.  As second track on a live album, it’s probably a good thing it’s not a 10 minute workout.

Just as on Hysteria, “Animal” follows “Rocket”.  Joe’s voice is more gentle here, and the song offers some different guitar touches that are fresh and interesting.  Next, it’s the aforementioned “C’Mon C’Mon”, the first new track presented from Songs From the Sparkle Lounge.  You’d think it would be a live highlight, but it’s just a tune.  Onto the next.  Unfortunately the next is “Make Love Like a Man” which really…how is this still in the set?”  Not a good version either.  Fortunately, the trajectory is reversed with the Pyromania classic “Too Late For Love”.  Always underappreciated, this apocalyptic burner has it all.  Cool, atmospheric slow opening, wicked guitar parts, and Screamin’ Joe!  Not screaming as much, but just enough.  Keeping with the Pyromania, a decent version of “Foolin'” follows.  Decent but not quiet incendiary.

The much maligned “Nine Lives” from Sparkle Lounge clicks live only when we get past that silly twangy intro.  With that out of the way, it’s just rock and roll.  Better than the album counterpart.  At this point, we’ve come a long way without a ballad.  “Love Bites” is the first, and it’s a good version, even if it feels a touch understated.  Unfortunately, the cover tune “Rock On” from the Yeah! album closes this disc, and I wish Def Leppard never played it again.

Disc two opens with the acoustic ballad “Two Steps Behind” which the audience goes nuts for.  There are a lot of versions of this song out there in the Leppard oeuvre, so here’s another one!  From there, it’s a surprising acoustic version of “Bringing on the Heartbreak”, an unexpected variant.  It would be nice if there weren’t choruses where the audience sings, but it’s live.  Whatcha gonna do.  That’s part of the experience that doesn’t translate well to album.  Eventually it goes electric, and right into “Switch 625” which is automatically an album highlight.

A brilliant “Hysteria” is another album highlight.  It’s a hard song for this band to mess up.  They never do.  Always powerful, as ballads go.  A guitar-packed “Armageddon It” follows, and it’s a solid string of nothing but hits.  “Photograph”, “Sugar”, “Rock of Ages”, and “Let’s Get Rocked” continue the golden oldies.  Even “Let’s Get Rocked” cooks, which it doesn’t always.  Really cool guitar stuff happening here.

That’s the end of the main set, as there is a fade and an audio change.  It’s weird to get the Sweet cover “Action” at this stage of the game, but it does rock.  And that goes into “Bad Actress”, a really fast smoker from Sparkle Lounge that was a true return to form for the band.  These songs sound like an opening from another concert, but that’s it for the live stuff.  Onto the new!

This album features three new studio cuts, with one bonus track in Japan.  The first of these is the tepid “Undefeated”.  Yes it rocks, and yes it has some groove…but that “Cha!” vocal hook?  I dunno.  I just don’t know.  The Rick Savage ballad “Kings of the World” has a Queen-like sound.  We know Sav likes Queen.  This piano ballad is quite nice if a bit long.  The Queen-like qualities and bombast are its strengths.  In Japan, you also get the “different version” which is shorter and stripped down.  Not as impactful though.  The final new song, “It’s All About Believin'” has an upbeat staccato opening but then turns into a stock rocker.  Nothing special or particularly memorable.

Mirror Ball is somewhat disappointing as the “first” Def Leppard live album.  A few tracks sputter, and several could have been axed.  Worth buying, as there’s enough good here, but it might not get frequent spins in your deck.

3/5 stars

Previous:  

  1. The Early Years Disc One – On Through the Night 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early Years Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC Recordings 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your Face DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)
  28. X
  29. Best Of (UK)
  30. Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection
  31. Yeah!
  32. Yeah! Bonus CD With Backstage Interviews
  33. Yeah…Nah!  (Record Store Tales)
  34. Songs From the Sparkle Lounge
  35. “C’Mon C’Mon” (picture disc)
  36. Taylor Swift & Def Leppard – CMT Crossroads (DVD)
  37. B.Sides
  38. Yeah! II
  39. Yeah! Live

Next:

41. iTunes re-recordings
42. Viva Hysteria

Sunday Chuckle Screening: Idiot Burns $100 of Statues Before Googling

Like the title says.

These statues haunted my nightmares as a kid.  My parents left them in the firewood to burn.  I took the nightmare fuel and burned them.  Then Facebook informed me of their value.

 

#1010: A Quick One

RECORD STORE TALES #1010: A Quick One

“And I said welcome to the show!”

Welcome to this “Behind the Scenes” instalment of Record Store Tales!  Just a quick update on music, writing, and other assorted goings-on!  The soundtrack for me writing this is the new Marillion album, An Hour Before It’s Dark.  Great album.

Things are rolling on, and we are enjoying our summer.  Together.  Jen and I have not spent this much time together in years.  I’m happy to report that we still enjoy each other’s company.  I have to tell you, I don’t miss the show.  The LeBrain Train – remember the LeBrain Train?  Instead of broadcasting to YouTube every Friday night, we’re enjoying the sunset.  I’m sorry if that’s hard news, but I don’t miss it.  I can’t help how I feel.  On the other hand, as many of you know, I tend to get depressed in the fall and winter.  I like to have strategies to cope with the depression, and for the last two years, that has been the LeBrain Train.  So, I am certain that when winter rolls in, I will need the show back.  It won’t be the same — I want to keep things fresh.  The Meat Man and I have been discussing ideas.  We will be back at some point in time.  I know that because I know my depression will eventually return.  The show, and you the viewers, help me cope.

Be patient.  It’s not time yet.  I will know when it feels right.  Summer is short in Canada.  We only get so many weeks, and before too long the days are short and the temperatures cold.  I know some of my pals, like my good buddy Aaron, love the winter.  All I can say is there are times I’m envious.

I’ve been posting daily, keeping a steady pace, but don’t be surprised to see “filler posts” pop up now and again.  Kind of like this one.  For me to sit down and spend two hours listening and writing every single night — it’s just a hard pace to keep up.  You’ll know the filler posts when you see them!  I was thinking of doing a “Sheik Week” – an entire week of posts dedicated to the tweets of the Iron Sheik.

Views are down, comments are down, but I keep on keepin’ on.  Music and writing.  It’s what I do.  What I have done for most of my life.  I’ve been branching out.  Fiction is refreshing.  The ways the words flow so easily when I write fiction, it’s remarkable!  Writing a music article is hard work.  Finding out the facts, confirming the details, describing the music…sometimes I feel like I am running out of words.  I don’t have that problem with fiction.  It’s so refreshing.  You have already read The Adventures of Tee Bone Man, we have seven chapters now, and we are building the story into something huge.  You’ll see.  In my spare time I have also been writing “sexy fiction” that is not for public consumption.  I have been inspired and the words flow easily.  It keeps things fresh.  I enjoy writing fiction.  I need to find more ways to incorporate fiction with my musical writings here.  I will figure it out!

In the meantime, I will be continuing to report from the lake with fantastic photos, rocking videos, and stories of our musical roadtrips.  Jen and I met 17 years ago and I’ve never felt closer.

It has been a great summer.  And it ain’t over yet.

The Adventures of Tee Bone Man Chapter 7 – The Revenge of Common Knowledge

THE ADVENTURES OF TEE BONE MAN
Chapter 7 – The Revenge of Common Knowledge

Late afternoon.  Saturday.  Deke’s Palace.

Tee Bone Man was snoring away in the basement, having downed more than his fair share of Scotch.  His mouth agape and eyes closed, he looked like he was trying to take a giant bite of a monster-sized sandwich.  The sound was like that of 100 chainsaws clearing their way through the Thunder Bay brush.

Superdekes entered the room with an armful of tools.  He noticed a pile of mail on his workdesk, off to one side.  On top of the mail, lay a picture postcard from their Australian friend, Harrison Holden.  Together, Deke, Tee Bone Man, and “El Moustachio” had defeated the forces of Satan himself.  Good times!  He was smiling in the photo, waving with one hand, while another hand held a large satchel.  Peeking from the satchel, was a tiny black-ish blur that Deke could not make out.  But Deke wasn’t interested in the postcard.

He sat at the desk, resuming serious work.  There Deke focused, deeply concentrating.  His brow furrowed as he worked, on a new device that he was looking forward to testing in the field.  With the utmost patience, he drove in a tiny screw, sweat beading on his forehead in concentration.  This was delicate work and he needed to be steady.  His gadgets were nothing if not clever, complicated and dangerous.  Tee Bone Man snored away on the couch.

“HNNNNNGGGGGGGGCCCCCCCCHHHHHHHHHHHHH,” came the sound from Tee Bone’s piehole.  Deke turned, gave an annoyed glare, and got back to his work.

“HNNCHHH…HNCCHHHH…” snored Tee Bone in response.  The superhero clutched his cape like a blanket, and snuggled in deeper on the couch.

Standing up, Deke made an announcement to no one.  “That’s it!”  He slammed his hands down on the table.  “I can’t work with the sound of a garbage disposal unit fighting with a Sasquatch!  Finit!!  I’m out!”  Deke grabbed his backpack and made for the door.  “BYE!” he shouted at the sleeping Tee Bone Man, who stirred just a tad before falling back sound asleep.  Deke scowled.  Even with all his jeering, he was unable to stir the superhero even slightly from his deafening slumber.

It was a lovely day outside.  The sun was starting to cast lengthening shadows through the trees.  Superdekes paused a moment at the serenity of the outdoors while his partner sawed logs indoors.  He looked around and inhaled, trying to find some inner peace.  It was a glorious day!  Strapping on his backpack, Deke made his way down the path, to the main road.  Deke’s Palace shrank into the distance behind him.

“Nice day for a walk anyway.  I’ll give the big guy two hours to sleep it off.  I may as well see what’s going on down at the old current river.”

Superdekes turned right onto the road and made his way down the shady, tree-lined lane.  When the Palace was built many years before, this place was selected for its seclusion, with very little activity or traffic.  It made it easier to solve crimes and save rock and roll, while avoiding the attention of darker forces.  Maybe it wasn’t a bad thing that he had to get outside for some peace of mind after all.  It was a pretty sweet spot.

Cool air wafted his way in light fluttering breaths.  The breeze was so pleasant.  He could identify the smell of lilacs, pine trees, and…something else.  He wrinkled his nose.  Was that parmesan cheese?  Strange, he thought.  He gave his underarm a quick whiff.  Nope, it wasn’t him.

As Superdekes walked, he felt more and more uneasy.  Deke’s Palace was out of sight behind him, and he felt increasingly nervous the further he got.  He turned around and smelled the air again.  Parmesan.  Stronger this time.  Clouds began to roll overhead, covering the day with a dark aura.

“I better go back and make sure I locked the door,” said Superdekes with worry in his words.

His instincts were keen and his concern was justified.  From out of nowhere boomed a voice. A bass-y voice that was vaguely familiar to Deke’s ageing though still sharp memory banks.  “Too late, Superdekes.  Too late!”

Deke stopped dead in his tracks.

“You can’t go back now,” taunted the voice; directionless, all encompassing.  “You got a little too loose with your precautions, and now you’re alone and without your flying motorcycle.  I’ve been waiting for this moment a long time.  I knew it would come if I was patient.  It was simply…common knowledge.”

“Oh, no,” murmured Deke.  “Not him.  No, no, no.  I better call Tee Bone Man right away.  I need reinforcements.”  Superdekes fumbled with his phone and called the Palace, but there was no ring!  Deke shook the phone in frustration.  He looked around the treeline for any visual.  “No, no.  Not this guy.  Not again.  Not again.”

The voice from the woods answered him.  “Yes again!  I knew eventually you would take a walk, and leave the snoring Tee Bone there alone, sleeping defenceless.  His sleep apnea is…common knowledge!  Quite legendary on Reddit, in fact.  Now I’ve cut the phone lines, and it’s time for my merciless revenge!  Everybody needs a little trouble, and I’m about to give you a lot!  You thought you saw the last of me, but you have actually seen the last of Tee Bone!  Once I finish you, knocking him off will be a simple task!”

Deke stood his ground and prepared for battle.  “Shut up and show yourself!  I’m right here by myself.  Or are you a coward?  You never could stop chattering.”

With a thunderous thwack, suddenly before him, a tall figure brandishing a bright teal-coloured doubleneck bass guitar leaped from the trees and landed in the middle of the road, blocking Deke’s path home.  The figure had his long blonde hair tied back in a ponytail, while balancing a Tilley hat upon his ample head.  He adjusted the volume knob on his bass, turning it past 10, all the way up to 11.  His spandex-covered legs leaned into it, and took firm ground as he prepared to unleash his bass fury.  On his feet were genuine white platform boots from the 1970s, perfectly preserved as if frozen in a moment in time.  The villain raised his head, revealing his face.

“Hello, Deke.  You remember me, don’t you?  I got you on the road to ruin!” The bassist aimed his instrument right at Deke’s head.

With a tired sigh, Deke answered.  “Yes, I remember you, Common Knowledge.”  He did indeed clearly recall the last time they encountered this villain.  They barely escaped with their lives that time.  And now he was back for revenge.  “I should have known you were creeping around from the smell of parmesan.”

The bassist named Common Knowledge grinned.  “That’s right!  Throwing away your cheese rinds is a shame!  You can make a rich, delicious and versatile broth with them, and while simmering, the forest will smell fantastic!  In case you’re worried, the ink used on cheese rinds is food grade and perfectly safe!”

“Yeah, that wasn’t really something I was too worried about,” answered Superdekes, realizing he forgot his personal power shield.  He took up a defensive position and a mental inventory of every gadget in his backpack.  Common Knowledge was one of the most annoying foes that Superdekes has ever faced.  Claiming to have foreknowledge of almost everything, the villain had a knack for seeing attacks coming.  Worse though, he simply couldn’t stop pointing it out every time.  He’s as irritating as he is dangerous.

“What’s it gonna be?” challenged Deke, raising his fists.  “You won’t get what you want this time.”

Common Knowledge laughed.  “I already got what I wanted.  You and Tee Bone Man separated!  Two fools born a minute.”  He then launched a volley of 16th notes from the E string.  They formed a powerful wave that knocked Superdekes right off his feet.  “Hah!  I bet you can feel that right down to your knucklebones!”

With a creak, Deke got himself back up off the ground.  “Yep…affirmative…” he groaned as he stood.  “Thanks for asking,” said Dekes with a hint of salty sarcasm.  Steadying himself, he saw how this was going to go.  He reached into his backpack for a specific gadget.

“Hey Common Knowledge,” said Deke as he stalled for time.  “Tell me again how you were unemployed after leaving your original band!”

The bassist turned red in anger.  He visibly had to calm himself down to answer.  “I was never ‘unemployed’,” he boomed.  He was boiling!  Then it happened, the moment Deke was waiting for – Common Knowledge briefly closed his eyes to center himself after the insulting comment!  “‘Unemployed’…You are the first person in 33 years to assume such a thing.”

“Assume this!” said Deke as he blasted the bassist with one of his favourite gadgets – a shrinking ray!  The beam hit Common Knowledge right in the Tilley hat.  Yet the bassist simply opened his eyes and brushed it off.  No effect!  Though his hat shrunk, he casually tossed it aside and pulled another identical one from thin air!  He adjusted his new hat.

“A shrinking ray?  Really?  I’m ‘Mr. Big’!  Or didn’t you know that?  I thought it was…common knowledge.”

“Oh shit,” whispered Deke to himself.  “This guy is so annoying.  Not only does he deflect everything you throw at him, he always brags that he saw it coming because it’s ‘common knowledge’.”  Thinking it through, Deke’s computer-like mind worked out a plan.  “Somehow, I’m going to have to really take him by surprise.  Something he can’t see coming.  In the meantime. I’ll keep him off balance by annoying him…just as much as he annoys me!  His one weakness.”  Superdekes grabbed something else from his backpack to stall the villain.  With force, he tossed a sonic grenade.

“CATCH!” he shouted.  “Hey, remind me how your one ‘Big’ band broke up in the 90s again?”

Common Knowledge swatted the sonic grenade away with a swing of his bass.  “You know this already!  It was due to nothing other than us being burnt out!”  The grenade went off past the treeline with a sound loud enough to wake Tee Bone Man from his slumber…or so Deke hoped.  The bassist then wound up, aimed his instrument at Deke again and, with fingers flying, sent a load of lightning fast bass notes at our hero.  “Sink your teeth into that!” he taunted.  Superdekes dove out of the way just in time.

Stalling now, Deke kept going at him.  “So, Common Knowledge, tell me your Top Five brands of parmesan cheese!”  He blasted the bassist with another gadget, a blinding burst of light.  Common Knowledge predicted this and simply dropped his special extra-dark sunglasses over his eyes.  “Favourite cheeses?  Too hard to choose,” he answered grimly.

“‘Too Hard To Choose’?” answered Deke incredulously.  “I never heard of that brand before.”  He fired a wrist-rocket from his watch which the bassist swatted away with his doubleneck.  It flew off course and exploded somewhere high above.  Leaves showered the road from the blast.

“I hear you are a bass player too,” mocked Common Knowledge.  “Are you addicted to that rush?”  He sent another flurry of notes, even faster this time, straight at Superdekes. With reflexes honed by years of fighting evil supervillains, Deke barely dodged this blast of bass.  It was that finger-picking technique that Common Knowledge was using.  Almost impossibly fast, but…wait a minute!  Like a lightbulb going off in Deke’s head, he knew immediately what to do next.  But Common Knowledge had already loaded up some right-hand three-finger picking and tapping combos with controlled feedback!  Deke dove out of its path, but the back of his jacket received most of the blow, now smouldering with bass heat.

“I seen that coming a mile!” taunted Superdekes, intentionally using Northern Ontario grammar.

Common Knowledge began to boil in frustration.  “You SAW, you mean.  These words are important!  They have meaning!  Please use them correctly!”

“Use THESE correctly!” yelled Deke as he surprised the villain with another shot.  “Or are these not common knowledge?”  From a custom nuclear-powered dispenser, Deke fired a volley of bass picks!  It was a gadget that Deke prototyped for live gigs, but was far too overpowered for club shows.  “Hey man!  Lean into this!  It’s the price you gotta pay.  The whole world’s gonna know who beat you.”

Common Knowledge’s eyes opened wide.  This time, he didn’t see it coming!  How could he?  He doesn’t play with picks!  The tiny pieces of plastic flew at him too fast to block.  They cut his skin as they hit, leaving a thousand tiny wounds.  The evil bassist slouched to the ground, unable to withstand the assault.  He raised a hand in defense, to no avail.  The little tiny picks kept coming at him, even cutting through the thick callouses on the bassist’s hands.

“I yield!” yelled Common Knowledge from behind his hands.  “I yield!”

Deke lowered his weapon.  “Drop the bass, Common Knowledge!  Drop it now and you’ll get lucky this time.”

With a thud, the bright teal doubleneck bass hit the dirt.  Common Knowledge sat up, broken and bleeding from the battle.  He kept his head down in shame, hiding his face under his hat.  “Please don’t tell anyone,” he begged.  “I don’t want this humiliating defeat to be common knowledge.”

From behind him, a big voice boomed.  “I’ll make sure the entire story is in a Guitar World cover article by Greg Renoff.”  It was Tee Bone Man, awakened from his deep slumber!  “That’s the least you deserve.”

The two heroes, Superdekes and Tee Bone Man, reunited with a hug.  “I heard one of your sonic grenades go off,” said Tee Bone, “so I threw on some pants, and got here as quickly as I could!  But it looks like you didn’t need my help.”  He surveyed the scene around him.  The sound of a squirrel happily chirping away startled him a moment, but then Tee Bone focused on Common Knowledge in scorn.  Though there were signs of a battle, there was only one clear loser, and he sat crying on the road under his silly hat.

“Even separately…I could not defeat them…” he moaned to himself.

“Nope,” answered Superdekes.  “I guess the power of Tee Bone Man and Superdekes isn’t common knowledge after all!”

BONUS:  For Common Knowledge’s backstory, click here!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

REVIEW: Hess – Just Another Day (2003 Japanese import)

HESS – Just Another Day (2003 Marquee Japanese import)

Harry Hess of Harem Scarem focused on the softer side of his core sound on this excellent solo album, featuring his bandmates Pete Lesperance and Creighton Doane.  Just Another Day is a bit softer than Harem Scarem, but is not just a collection of ballads.  It’s a slice of the same pie, with more of an acoustic lean.

Just Another Day features nine new songs (ten in Japan) and one Harem Scarem cover.  And that’s for good reason!  Originally, “Sentimental Blvd.” was ably sung by drummer Darren Smith.  If you’ve ever wanted to know what this classic would have sounded like with Hess singing lead, now you can.  It’s very similar indeed, with Harry throwing a little extra rasp on top.  This remake might be better, if you happen to prefer the sound of Harry.  Smith even sings backing vocals on this track, and with four Harem members appearing on it, it very well could be called Harem Scarem.

As for the original tunes, Harry opens with a poppy upbeat number called “Look Right Through Me”, featuring a nice tasty guitar lick as the introductory hook.  Sounds like a slide.  On backing vocals?  Eric Martin of Mr. Big!  The chorus hits all the bases – off to a great start!  “Wasted Away” is a nice sounding acoustic ballad with a stepped-up chorus.  Lush backing vocals here too.  Joining Harry on electric guitar is Mike Turner formerly of Our Lady Peace!

“Everybody” is pure pop joy.  There’s a Beatles-y vibe to the acoustic bop.  But then the passionate title ballad “Just Another Day” might take things a step too far by employing trendy drum programming in the verses.  The song is fine but the programming is dated.  Redemption comes on “Two Ways”, another acoustic tune with a serious case of melody!  Harry sings his ass off.

The electric guitars come out for “Undone”, another fine pop rock tune with a Beatle-bent.  Big Harem-style chorus though.  By contrast, “My Way” has a pop-punk vibe circa the start of the millennium.  In a good way.  There were a lot of good pop-punk songs and Harem were not afraid of that sound.  Simply put, Harry doesn’t get enough credit for his songwriting chops.  He’s well versed in melody, guitar hooks, and even progressive facets.  “Miles Away” is a fantastic ballad, touching all those bases.  The verses and chorus are top notch.

The Japanese bonus track “Up Hill Climb” is one of the most mellow of the songs.  Once again the vocals (lead and backing) are outstanding.

Harem Scarem fans already like ballads and don’t mind a little bit of pop in their rock.  They’ll dig this solo album too.  It is a pleasant, but not bland, record of largely songs that might have been too soft for Harem.  Definitely worth a listen if you can find one at a decent price.

3.5/5 stars

REVIEW: Def Leppard – Yeah! Live (CD Collection Volume 3)

Part Thirty-Nine of the Def Leppard Review Series

DEF LEPPARD – Yeah! Live (CD Collection Volume 3 Disc 6) (2021)

On the very last disc of the third volume of Def Leppard’s CD Collection box set series, we finally take some previously missing B-sides off the table and into your collection.  This is the shortest of the discs in this set, with only eight tracks.  However the rarity firepower is high.  They call it Yeah! Live, making it the third album in the ret-conned Yeah! covers series.

1. It’s almost inexcusable that “Elected” hasn’t popped on these box sets yet, being a 1987 live version with Steve Clark, released in 1992 on the “Heaven Is” CD single.  Its most logical release point was the fine 2006 deluxe edition of Hysteria, chronologically speaking, but it was not included on the otherwise comprehensive 7 disc 2017 Hysteria box set either.  For a while it seemed this B-side had slipped through the cracks, but here it is opening Yeah! Live.  It is the second time an Alice Cooper song has appeared in this box set, though this is obviously the earliest recording of them all.  Screamin’ Joe is in prime-time form and Steve Clark has been missed on this box set.

2. “Action”.  Completing the Target bonus tracks from the Yeah! release, its “Action” live.  Recorded somewhere on the 2005 tour, here it is, and it’s a stunningly good version.  Leppard at their heaviest, covering Sweet.  No problem.  Thanks for checking this box in the collection.

3. “No Matter What”.  The last of the Best Buy bonus tracks from the Yeah! album.  Same as above, recorded live somewhere unspecified on the 2005 tour.  The Leppard studio original was included on the main Yeah! track listing, but this is its first and only live release to date.  Nice solid pop rock, and a good version to boot.

4. “Rock On”.  Recorded live in 2006.  Not a bad version in fact, of a song that’s pretty “meh” usually.  They take it to a really Zeppelin-y “Levy Breaks” kind of place at the end.  It does not say “previously unreleased” on this track, but it also does not state where it was released before.  You can get different live versions on the Leppard releases The Lost Sessions, And There Will Be A Next Time…, and Mirrorball Live.

5. “Travelling Band” with Brian May, live in 1983.  I’ll quote myself from my review of Pyromania Live from the deluxe edition of that album:  “The long friendship between Leppard and Queen began right here.  A cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s ‘Travelling Band’ is the earliest recording of Joe and May together, but certainly not the last!  This is not only a piece of history, but it’s a brilliant track!  Joe’s screaming voice is strangely well suited to an overblown CCR cover.  But hearing the guitar trio solo together, each with their own style, is the real icing on the cake.  May is so creamy!”

6. “Now I’m Here” with Brian May, live in 1992.  From the Freddie Mercury tribute concert, and previously released on the Adrenalize deluxe and the 1993 “Tonight” CD single.  A brilliant version of one of Queen’s hard rockers, and the Brian May solo is as thrilling as you’d expect.  One of the highlight performances at the Freddie Mercury concert.

7. “20th Century Boy” with Brian May, live in 2006 from the VH1 Rock Honors show.  Previously unreleased!  Automatically superior to Leppard’s studio version due to the wall of guitars caused by the presence of Dr. Brian May.  Awesome solo work.

8. “All The Young Dudes” with Ian Hunter, from Hunter’s rare Once Bitten Twice Shy album.  First ever release on a Def Leppard collection.  Joe’s favourite song and really thick sounding.  Too thick, perhaps.  Ian Hunter takes all the lead vocals with Leppard joining him on the backings.  Really cool to end this box set with Ian Hunter, and nice to finally get this song.  Scratch it off your wishlists.

Pretty good, if a bit weird, collection of all the live covers not included on previous discs in this series, and some unreleased stuff too.  It’s a bit odd to get stuff like “Elected” and “Travelling Band” that are better suited to earlier discs, but here they are and that’s what’s important.  That brings Vol 3 of the CD Collection to an end, and it’s nice to have closure for some of the single B-sides.

3.5/5 stars

Previous:  

  1. The Early Years Disc One – On Through the Night 
  2. The Early Years Disc Two – High N’ Dry
  3. The Early Years Disc Three – When The Walls Came Tumbling Down: Live at the New Theater Oxford – 1980
  4. The Early Years Disc Four – Too Many Jitterbugs – EP, singles & unreleased
  5. The Early Years Disc 5 – Raw – Early BBC Recordings 
  6. The Early Years 79-81 (Summary)
  7. Pyromania
  8. Pyromania Live – L.A. Forum, 11 September 1983
  9. Hysteria
  10. Soundtrack From the Video Historia – Record Store Tales
  11. In The Round In Your Face DVD
  12. “Let’s Get Rocked” – The Wait for Adrenalize – Record Store Tales
  13. Adrenalize
  14. Live at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
  15. Retro-Active
  16. Visualize
  17. Vault: Def Leppard’s Greatest Hits / Limited Edition Live CD
  18. Video Archive
  19. “Slang” CD single
  20. Slang
  21. I Got A Bad Feeling About This: Euphoria – Record Store Tales
  22. Euphoria
  23. Rarities 2
  24. Rarities 3
  25. Rarities 4
  26. Cybernauts – Live
  27. Cybernauts – The Further Adventures of the Cybernauts (bonus disc)
  28. X
  29. Best Of (UK)
  30. Rock Of Ages: The Definitive Collection
  31. Yeah!
  32. Yeah! Bonus CD With Backstage Interviews
  33. Yeah…Nah!  (Recored Store Tales)
  34. Songs From the Sparkle Lounge
  35. “C’Mon C’Mon” (picture disc)
  36. Taylor Swift & Def Leppard – CMT Crossroads (DVD)
  37. B.Sides
  38. Yeah! II

Next:

40. Mirror Ball – Live & More (Japanese import)
41. iTunes re-recordings
42. Viva Hysteria

The Writer’s Room: The Adventures of Tee Bone Man will return after these messages….

August 20, 2022. The Writer’s Room.

“OK guys!” I said as I put my coffee down on the table. “What do we have coming up for Tee Bone Man?”

Harrison officially began the meeting. “I believe you are next with your Deke-centric story, correct Mr. LeBrain?”

“That’s right,” I answered. “That will go up next week. That’s a very special one.  For reasons we will see.”

Harrison smiled.  He understood what was in store for Superdekes.

The 80s Metal Man spoke next, the newest member at the writer’s table.   “And if I am correct, after your Deke story, I will go next month with my time travel tale.”

“Wahoo!” shouted Aaron.

“And after time travel,” answered Harrison, “I have my next story lined up. It is pretty epic and involves a lot of song references and a little bit of foreshadowing.”

“Awesome sauce,” I responded.

Snowman piped in next. “I have an idea for a space-based adventure.”

“Wahoo!” shouted Aaron.

“That sounds great, Snowman. Will there be an even bigger Gene Simmons box set in this one? 10,000 discs of outtakes this time?”

Snowman laughed, but declined to answer the question. “You’ll just have to wait and see. But since you all think I look like Richard Dreyfuss, it might be fun to do a Close Encounters homage with Tee Bone Man and Superdekes.”

Harrison spoke up. “I’m very much looking forward to doing the Lego art on that one, Snowman. Please keep me posted so I can get started on it as soon as possible.”

“Wahoo!” shouted Aaron.

“Hey Harrison,” I said. “How is it going with the Lego art anyway?”

“Very well thank you,” responded the mustachioed Australian metal madman. “But as you can see, it’s not simple artwork by any means. I’d like a month between story chapters in order to perfect the artwork for each.”

The writers at the table all nodded their heads in agreement.

“Wahoo!” shouted Aaron.

“How about you, Aaron?” I queried. “Got anything cooking for Tee Bone Man?”

“Wahoo! I mean, no, not at the moment but I am sure I can come up with another one,” answered Aaron.

“Give ‘er!” I responded, throwing one of his favourite sayings at him. “You’re always welcome to contribute. It would be fun if you included yourself in your next story. We all have.” The table nodded in agreement again.

“OK, so let me get this all straight, just to make sure we’re all on the same page.” I was very excited for how well this was all going, with this creative bunch of writers.  “I’m next with my Deke chapter. Then Metal Man is on deck. Harrison goes after Metal Man. That’s the next two to three months of content right there. We are in good shape, I think.”

“I agree,” said Harrison. “And having read Metal Man’s chapter already, I think it’s good enough to break the multiverse.”

Metal Man smiled at the compliment. “Thank you,” he said. “I might have to write a sequel, I had so much story to fit in there.”

“You’re more than welcome to write a sequel,” I responded. “I’d also like to get some fresh blood in the writer’s room, see if anyone else has a good story to contribute.”

Breaking the fourth wall, Snowman spoke, to you the reader! “That’s right. Whoever is out there reading this right now, if you think you have what it takes, leave a comment below. There are lot of people that know Tee Bone and Superdekes, who could probably do a great job.”

A shudder came over Harrison. “But keep in mind, I can only do art for one per month.”

“And none of us want you to rush it,” I said. “But keep in mind the whole idea was for this to be a community effort.”

“COMMUNITY!” shouted Aaron.

The table nodded in agreement again. I sipped my coffee and continued. “I understand your concerns, and obviously we don’t want things to get bogged down too much.” Like Snowman, I then broke the fourth wall and spoke directly to the readers. “We just all want you, the reader, to understand we want inclusivity. Maybe Lana can come up with a story. Who knows, maybe even Deke will have an idea. I just want people to know this is for all of us.”

I stood and walked around the table to address all the writers.

“You guys are all killing it. We already have some amazing chapters written and it’s only getting better. I want you guys to know how much I appreciate you jumping on this idea with me…” I noticed Aaron had his hand up to ask a question. “Yeah, Aaron? What’s up.”

“I can’t help but notice you’re not wearing pants,” he said flatly.

I looked down and saw he was right.

“Didn’t you get the memo from Tee Bone? It’s time to tell the world – Fuck Pants!”

THE ADVENTURES OF TEE BONE MAN

Chapter One: A Friend in Need (by LeBrain)

Chapter Two: Hell Freezes Over (by Harrison Kopp)

Chapter Three: Hell Ain’t A Bad Place to Be (by LeBrain)

Chapter Four: Tee Bone Man and the Rink of…Doom? (by Aaron KMA)

Chapter Five: The Super Duper Vault (by John Snow)

Chapter Six: Tee Bone Man Goes to Camp (by LeBrain)
COMING SOON: Chapter Seven!